Suns new SPARC GPL’d (open source hardware)…

Computers & Mobile
Suns new SPARC GPL’d (open source hardware)…

Make 957
Jonathan Schwartz from Sun on the new GPL’d SPARC –

We’re announcing the fastest microprocessor we’ve ever shipped this week – delivering 89.6 Ghz of parallel computing power on a single chip – running standard Java applications and open source OS’s. Simultaneously, we’ve said we’re entering the commodity marketplace, and opening the chip up to our competition. It’s probably worth explaining….

…the blueprints for our UltraSPARC T2 (I personally like the moniker, “Niagara 2” – named after Niagara Falls, btw, and the great volumes of water that pass over them), the core design files and test suites, will be available to the open source community, via its most popular license: the GPL. Making Niagara 2 the only commodity silicon whose core designs are available to the open source community – whose strength, and market power, only grows by the day.

Sun Enters the Commodity Silicon Business – Link.

Related:
Sun Microsystems Enters Commercial Silicon Market With World’s Fastest Commodity Microprocessor – Link.

This isn’t our usual coverage of open source hardware projects like MP3 players, USB chargers or something you can build with a kit (yet) – but check out our ongoing coverage of all things open source hardware here – Link.

2 thoughts on “Suns new SPARC GPL’d (open source hardware)…

  1. katre50 says:

    That’s kinda cool, but once I have the files, how do I “compile”? I’m guessing we’re looking at a couple hundred grand just to do anything with this. Great for other companies already in the chip business, useless for real people.

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